Boxer: Loyalty Exploited

Of all the abused, trusting and naive animals on the Animal Farm, none of them worked harder or was more devoted to the pigs than Boxer, the cart-horse. "Boxer was an enormous beast, nearly eighteen hands high, and as strong as any two ordinary horses put together" (Orwell Animal Farm 2).

As he is the strongest animal on the farm, he is constantly called upon to complete difficult tasks that even all the animals combined wouldn't be able to do. However, "... he was not of first-rate intelligence, but he was universally respected for his steadiness of character and tremendous powers of work" (Orwell 2). It is this steadiness of character and loyalty that gets Boxer into a lot trouble after the Rebellion occurs and the pigs assume absolute power.

Although he isn't intelligent, Boxer realizes his importance to the new Utopia and the fact that what he does is the driving force behind it. "He had been a hard worker even in Jones's time, but now he seemed more like three horses than one; there were days when the entire work on the farm seemed to rest upon his mighty shoulders. From morning to night he was pushing and pulling, always at the spot where the work was hardest" (Orwell 18). At times Boxer doubted the decisions made by the pigs and the leaders themselves, yet he was never intelligent enough to understand exactly what was going on. "Boxer, who had now had time to think things over, voiced the general feeling by saying: 'If Comrade Napoleon says it, it must be right' " (Orwell 37). In place of thinking for himself, he resolves to remain stubbornly loyal to the cause of Animal Farm.

This foolish maxim along with his other of 'I will work harder' make up this beast's ideology from that point onward. It was then that I realized the reason Boxer adopts these personal mottoes is because he needs simple slogans to live by. When things become complex, all he can do is fall back on them. Although he is well intentioned, he is much too eager to have someone else tell him what to think. Due to this, he is exploited by the pigs, who allow him to push himself to the limit in order to help the farm.

Boxer may just be a fictional horse in a fictional book, but I found myself drawn to him and his work ethic. In fact, I saw a lot of qualities of Boxer being similar to myself. Throughout elementary school and some of high school, people always wanted to work with me during school projects. I was known as the "hard working browner" that would ensure a great grade for his group members because of my intelligence, eagerness, large capacity of work and the fact that I would take on projects myself instead of dividing up the work. This drive of mine was exploited by the students in my classes but it was also understandable. I never knew when to stop or let things go. I always wanted perfection and, in my opinion, that required me to do all the work. The combination of a pile of work to do and my drive for perfection resulted in a lot of stress for me and by the end of each year I was tired, burnt out and not the pleasant person that I take pride in being.

Unlike Boxer, I was able to stop this awful cycle that I found myself stuck in. A big part of that change for me was being introduced to the enriched stream of learning, where all students are as intelligent and eager as I am. Since then I have learned to delegate the work in a group scenario, be a better team play and step back every once in a while so I don't take on too much. Sadly for Boxer, the same could not be said for him. His dedication, loyalty and drive were too hard on his ageing body. However he wouldn't slow down, even when the other animals told him to.

Boxer's insane pace caused him to burn out and was what caused his death in pursuit of the dream of Animal Farm. "Too late, someone thought of racing ahead and shutting the five-barred gate; but in another moment the van was through it and rapidly disappearing down the road. Boxer was never seen again" (Orwell 82-83). At the same time, this also displayed the betrayal of the pigs, who merely sent him to the knacker without a thought after years of hard work and service by this powerful animal. For me, Boxer's life is a cautionary tale. In life it is important to work towards our goals but it is just as important to relax and enjoy where we are on our paths of life. Or else we will end up like Boxer: beaten down, tired, depressed and no longer the people that we want to be.